


To Celebrate the Battle Tower

by TheMewtwoLady



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Denial, Eventual Fluff, M/M, thats kind of it!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:35:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21943012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMewtwoLady/pseuds/TheMewtwoLady
Summary: Leon organizes an exhibition match to celebrate the opening of the Battle Tower. Leon is not known for being great at organizing things.Piers didn't have anything better to do this week, but at least he'll hopefully get that rematch from Raihan out of it.ily echo <3
Relationships: Kibana | Raihan/Nezu | Piers
Comments: 20
Kudos: 209





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [echoingback](https://archiveofourown.org/users/echoingback/gifts).



“I’m back,” Marnie announced, the door to their house creaking open. Piers could hear the familiar jingle as she dropped her bag unceremoniously in the front hall and tossed the mail onto the kitchen counter.

“Welcome back,” he called, turning on the old couch to face her. “How was the day?”

Marnie wrinkled her nose, heading through the kitchen. “Just fantastic.” She pulled the fridge open. “Some gym challenger had a real powerful muddy water that hit me more’n it hit morpeko.” Piers chuckled, and Marnie grumbled. “Well - what’ve you been up to today, huh?”

Piers turned back to the TV and gave a half-hearted shrug. “League archives, I guess.” 

“Whatcha still watchin’ them for?” Marnie was rinsing off an apple. “You haven’t done any battling since the championship.”

He gave a similar-sounding grumble to hers. “Dunno. Just...research, I guess.”

“I think you should go outside instead,” Marnie piped, coming to lean over the back of the sofa. Piers shot her a look. “C’mon, you have so much free time now you’re not runnin’ the gym. Why don’t you go catch me a sneasel? You know I really want one.”

“Not runnin’ errands for ya,” Piers said, plucking the apple out of his sisters’ hands and stealing a bite. “Besides, still gotta get ready for shows and all that.”   
  


“Like you’re doing now.”

Piers ignored her and her attempts to grab her apple back, and looked at her petulantly until she stomped back off to the kitchen to get another, muttering something that was probably  _ lazy arse _ under her breath. “Hey, wait, there’s a real letter for me here.”

“Are you sure it’s not just your holiday issue of  _ Baby Pokemon _ ?” Marnie ignored him, flipping it over before eventually popping open the (rather baroque) seal. “Well?”

Her face was rather unreadable, as usual. “‘s an invitation, I guess. Assumin’ it’s from Leon, because the stationary has pictures of him in the corners.” Piers snorted, but Marnie brought over the letter to show him, and - yep. Of course he would have that.

“Exhibition match, huh? To celebrate the battle tower opening?” She nodded, flipping the invitation over. “Sounds fun,” Piers added, “and it’ll be your first one of these things as leader, so that’s exciting.” Marnie’s face looked as close to excited as it ever got, which was not much of a difference, but a noticeable shift to those who knew her nonetheless. Piers grinned.

“Says it’s gonna be in ‘historic Hobston stadium’,” Marnie continued, still scanning the invitation.

“Huh,” Piers said, “Wonder how Leon managed to get that approved. Don’t think that stadium’s seen any use in almost a century other than for those dumb ‘Story of Galar’ events.”

“I’ve never been that far out in the countryside…” Marnie’s eyes were sparkling. “‘n Victor and everyone will be there.” She turned to Piers. “You’re comin’ too, though.”

“Wasn’t exactly  _ invited _ ...” Piers began, but by Marnie’s expression he knew there was no getting out of it without feeling terrible afterwards. Plus, he’d want to be there to support her, and maybe it wouldn’t be half bad to see the rest of the leaders in person again. Well, most of them. His mind lingered on one specific face and the promise of a rematch...but it’d been a while. He probably didn’t even remember...“Right.”

Marnie’s face lifted minutely again just as her phone chimed. Her brow furrowed. “Oh. It’s Leon.”

_ Beep. _ “All right, Marnie! Did you get my invite?” The former champion sounded incredibly out of breath.

“Uh - hey, Leon. Yeah, I...I just got it here a moment ag-”

“Oh, great news!” Leon said, his excitement palpable even through the phone and despite the fact he’d apparently run a marathon by the sound of it. “Been flying around all day to drop them off myself, seeing as I wanted to give you all proper notice, and you know how the post can be…”

That explained the breathlessness, then. “When - oh.” Marnie flipped the letter over again, and Piers leaned over her shoulder. “....a week from Sunday?”

“Sorry ‘bout that,” Leon continued, “but it took an age getting it all approved through the League. They just let me know, but it’s all sorted now. It’ll be an absolutely ch- it’ll be great! You can come, right?”

“Uh,” Marnie said, exchanging a glance with Piers and shrugging. “Well, if it’s all sorted with the League, then...yeah. We don’t have plans, uh-”

“BRILLIANT!” Leon shouted. Marnie almost dropped her phone. “Oh, Marnie, thank you! It’s going to be so great. You’re the first person that picked up, but we’re all going to have such a great time. Been planning this for almost a full month, now.”

Piers raised his eyebrows, mouthing  _ a month? _ incredulously. The man was something else. Marnie shook her head, trying not to laugh. “That’s tops, Leon.”

“Oh! And I almost forgot - d’you think Piers would come too? Raihan told me to ask. He’d be more than welcome, of course!”

Marnie raised an eyebrow.

“Uh, yeah - he’s here and he’ll come, if it’s alright, ‘course,” she continued. Piers was leaning in close enough to hear, and blinked at her, then shrugged. Maybe Raihan had been serious about a rematch. That made him feel better about the whole trip already.

“Fantastic. Just fantastic! Well, I’ll have train tickets sent off for you both quick. Sorry can’t stay longer and chat - I’m off to hopefully catch Milo next. See you soon?”

“See you,” Marnie replied, pulling the phone away from her ear just as a Charizard roar could be heard on the other end. She quickly hung up.

Piers gave a chuckle. “Oh, I hope Leon’s got folks helpin’ him out with this. For some reason I can’t place, he never struck me as the organized type.” 

Marnie shook her head, flopping back onto the couch beside him. “Yup,” she sighed. “Why d’you think Raihan wanted you to come, huh?”

Piers shrugged, looking down. “Dunno,” he said, “but - well, bit after that championship cup, he did say he’d love a rematch.”

“Why? He won.”

Piers shrugged. “Said somethin’ about fighting without dynamax this time around. Didn’t think he was that serious about following through, though.”

“Thoughtful of him,” Marnie said. “So is that the reason you’ve been watching all his matches? Was wondering why I had to miss one of Victor’s for his.”

Piers frowned down at his hands. “Not  _ all _ of ‘em,” he said defensively. “Just...been wanting to keep up when I can, is all.”

Marnie looked at him for a moment longer, then shrugged, apparently dropping the issue. “I want dinner. We have anything left?”

* * *

  
  
  


A day and a half later, it was Piers’ phone’s turn to ring. He had gone out - just to get groceries at the bigger market in Hammerlocke, but still. Marnie was (annoyingly) right about sitting indoors and isolating himself. Assuming it was their parents, likely giving some vague timeframe as to when they’d next be home that would probably be pushed back, Piers picked up.

“Piers,” a desperate-sounding and non-parental voice cried. “We have a problem.”

“Wh...who’s this?” Piers said, caught off guard. Even his own family rarely called him, so he hadn’t bothered to check the name.   
  


“Leon,” the voice answered, “listen, I’m really sorry, but Bea’s got some karate thing going on apparently this weekend and she won’t be able to make it back for the tournament in time. I need someone else to stand in.”

“Oh...aren’t you gonna battle? You could pair off.” He dropped a box of spaghetti into the basket.

“‘Course I’ll battle,” Leon said, as if it was obvious, “but I can’t just pop out in the first round like that. Wouldn’t be right.”

“You’re not even champion anymore, Leon. You can stoop to  _ our _ level now,” Piers reminded, but Leon ignored him.

“No, I’d like to ask if you’d come and fight in the bracket, Piers.”

Piers stopped.

“Me? Wh...why me?”

“Well, you were just a gym leader, mate! Why not? You’d be perfect, and you’ve already said you’d come anyway.”

Piers hesitantly started walking towards the till again. “Dunno,” he muttered, “Mean...I’m not in the best shape and all. ‘Sides, don’t you think doubling up on dark types is a little much?”   
  


Leon laughed. “Don’t worry so much! It’s only an exhibition match, anywho. We’ll all have fun! Please?”

It was hard to let Leon down, because as  _ infuriatingly  _ irritating as he could be, he’d always seem genuinely sad about it. And, Piers supposed, he’d been hoping to battle Raihan at some point anyway, so...what was the harm in it? As long as Marnie didn’t mind. He’d probably lose quickly, but it’d be a good warmup.

“Have to ask Marnie if she’d be fussed over that,” Piers conceded, “but if all’s well, then...sure.”

“YES, oh thank everything for the two of you,” Leon said, heaving a sigh of relief. “And if you’re so worried about being out of shape, I could give you some champion tips this we-” 

Piers hung up.

For some reason, the week leading up to the exhibition felt longer than usual. Piers spent most of the days training with Obstagoon, who seemed thrilled to be getting time to stretch his claws again. Marnie was practically vibrating with excitement, and she and Morpeko joined them every evening after challengers and trainers trickled out of the gym and they had the floor to themselves. It was nice - he remembered being this happy to be a gym leader before it’d all started to seem rather trite.

She’d been quite on board with the whole idea of him battling too, both to his relief and consternation. It was more fun to be back on the field than Piers wanted to admit, though. Marnie had outgrown his skills as a trainer immensely, but he was more proud than annoyed.

“It’s tomorrow,” Marnie said on Saturday night, breathless more from excitement than the battle they’d just had.

“Well, technically matches don’t start ‘til Monday,” Piers teased, but Marnie ignored him in favor of picking Morpeko up and giving the electric creature a squeeze. “Careful,” he chided, but he knew the small Pokemon was far too enamored with Marnie to ever give her so much as a shock. (Though he had been the one to catch her in the first place, he wasn’t sure the same courtesy extended to him.)

“I’m excited,” Marnie said, and Morpeko chirped seemingly in answer.

“Yeah. Me too,” Piers finally admitted. “Looking forward to this more than usual, I gotta say.” Battling without the pressure of having to run the gym every day or the stress of the championship circuit was always fun. He’d missed it, and so had his Pokemon.

It explained the lift in his heart since Leon had first called, of course.


	2. Chapter 2

The train to Hobston left promptly at seven o’clock Sunday morning, a fact that pleased neither of the siblings. Marnie was up first still, threatening to throw water on her brother before he finally sat up.

“It’s 5 on a  _ Sunday _ ,” Piers groaned. “Unbelievable. Can’t we get a later train?”

“Leon said there were none,” Marnie said, crossing her arms. “Only leaves once a day.”

“Yeah, because nobody wants to go up to Hobston on a nice weekend anyway.” Piers rolled out of bed begrudgingly, grateful that he’d at least had the forethought to finish packing last night.

An hour and change and a Corviknight ride later, Marnie and Piers arrived at Wyndon, blinking in the harsh sunlight that fell through the station’s roof.  _ Feels like just yesterday we were all here for the Cup,  _ Piers thought a little dazedly. Things were just much different now, weren’t they? Marnie was already tugging him towards the turnstiles, squinting at the track numbers on the board above their heads.

“Track 19,” Marnie read. Piers swallowed. He was excited, really, but equal parts nervous. Would it be weird to have him there with all the leaders again? Marnie had rolled her eyes at his concern, but he’d barely had any connection to competitive battling for the last few months, let alone the league. They could’ve - invented a new Pokemon or something, for all he knew.

Marnie glanced at him. “What’s wrong?”

He swallowed again. “Nothin’. L-let’s get the train.” He offered an unconvincing smile, fiddling with his choker, running his hands over the smooth metal as he followed her.

They found their seats on the train - in one of the nicer coaches, to Leon’s credit. Marnie settled herself into the window seat while Piers put the suitcases up, unable to contain her persistent small smile. She leaned into him as he sat down - then proceeded to fall asleep almost instantly, clearly the early awakening winning out over her excitement.

Piers sighed, beginning to fiddle with the end of his hair and staring out the window at the other trains whistling and waiting for passengers. The feeling of inadequacy wasn’t  _ new _ , per se; constantly fighting for Spikemuth to be able to keep its gym despite the inability to dynamax simply wore on you after a while. Marnie was a much better gym leader, too. Running a gym had always felt like more of a performance, but unlike music, it didn’t come as naturally to him. He loved Pokemon and battling, but something had never seemed...right about the whole thing. So he wasn’t all that upset about leaving, even if he missed the camaraderie more than he’d like to admit.

The train jolted slightly and then began to move, slowly as they left the station. Piers pulled his phone out, intent on putting the shows when they came back into the calendar, when the door at the end of the train car slid open and someone breathing very heavily stepped in. Piers glanced up.

Raihan looked thoroughly discombobulated as he stepped into the car and started heading right for Piers and Marnie’s seats, muttering something about early weekend trains and how Leon would have it. As soon as he noticed them, though, he brightened immensely. “Piers! You came!” He broke into a jog, almost falling over as the train turned a curve. Several of the other passengers eyed him with contempt.

Piers couldn’t help grinning a little at the sight of him. “Hey.”

Raihan stopped at their seats, still beaming, ignoring any irate glances thrown his way. “I’ve missed you! What’s been going on, man?” Piers shrugged, trying not to dislodge Marnie and failing, who lifted her head and blinked at him. “This and that, I guess. I, uh - missed you too,” he added, a little awkwardly.

“Aw, I’m glad you could make it out for this. You’re probably busy, but I know it’ll be so much fun. Hey, Marnie! Great to see you too,” he greeted. Marnie returned a wave. “Man, I almost missed the train. Why’s it so early, anyway?”

“I can see that.” Piers still looked amused. “Wish I knew. Not a morning person.”

Raihan laughed. “Man, I’m not surprised. Isn’t that like, required when you train dark-types?”

“Maybe so. You’ve got no excuse, then,” he said, looking amused. Raihan hung his head and gave a dramatic shrug. “Ahh, you’ve got me. I just stay up late. Almost always.” He dug into his hoodie pocket and fished out his ticket, already slightly crumpled. He frowned at it. “You’ve got seat D1 too?”

Piers pulled out his own ticket quickly, expecting he’d gotten it wrong somehow, but - nope, seat D1. He showed it to Raihan, who let out a laugh and shook his head. “Of course Leon’d manage to mess this one up. Man. At least it’s not crowded.” He sat down across from the two of them. “Right! I’ll just sit here until someone else kicks me out.” His rotom phone popped out to get some shots of its owner leaning against the train window, leaving Piers to wonder how it managed to do that so quickly. Did they have some sort of telepathic selfie connection?

Raihan stuck his tongue out at Piers when he was done. “This side lighting’s perfect. Don’t need any kind of edits on these,” he said, flipping the phone around to show them. They were, admittedly, handsome. He clearly had a flair for accentuating his rather pretty smile, objectively speaking. Marnie was nodding.

“D’you think I could do that on this old phone?” she asked, pulling her own (unpossessed) phone out. Raihan grinned. “Sure! Come on, let’s get a pretty picture of your brother there.” Piers made a face, but Marnie stood up anyway.

“Make sure the window line’s straight, like that, and you want to put him riiight there in the frame,” he said, pointing somewhere on the screen. Marnie nodded. Piers frowned. “Y’want me to smile or something? Say cheese?”

“Just look natural!” The phone clicked. “There, you really got it!” Raihan said. He smiled at the photo, then up at Piers. “You look mad, but it’s got bad boy appeal. Perfect.” Piers flushed at that, grabbing the phone from Marnie. It was a half-decent picture, even if he hated posed photos, especially of himself.

“Y’know a bit about photography, stuff, then?” he said to Raihan, who looked pleased. He hoped he wasn’t too red still - it was just complexion, after all.

“Of course,” he said, puffing out his chest. “At least the basics. Enough to get my feed looking good.” Piers snorted, shaking his head. “What, don’t you follow me?”

His band had a page, but Piers rarely was the one to update it. “Don’t check up on it too often,” he said, shooting Raihan a playful look. He looked wounded.

“I follow  _ yours, _ ” he said, clutching his chest in mock upset. “You should post that picture Marnie took.”

“I’ll consider it.”

The train ride to Hobston seemed to fall away with easy chatter. Raihan asked about his shows and Piers was always too happy to talk about music, but Raihan really didn’t seem to mind. He caught Piers up to speed on all the new league drama - there was  _ something  _ on with Milo and Gordie, they just kept looking at each other all through the last meeting - and it was...nice, to feel in the loop again. He’d missed it, at least a little.

When the chime sounded and the voice announced  _ Hobston, next stop _ , Piers felt strangely disappointed. Had it really been three hours already? Raihan got up to pull his suitcase down, and Marnie, who’d drifted off again at some point, blinked awake.

They stepped out of the station to cobbled streets clearly not designed for wheeled suitcases and wind, smelling of the sea (a few small towns over) and fish and chips. Marnie and Raihan both looked charmed, though. Their hotel wasn’t far, where they were greeted enthusiastically by Leon, who pulled them each into a bone-crushing hug.

“So glad you’ve all made it,” he said, clapping his hands together. “Some of the others are already here, a few more coming by car soon!” Piers refrained from asking if his new costume was for the annual Heroes of Galar Reenactment. He actually looked - rather tired, and a little frazzled. “There’s, ah, copies of the programs there, and if you want to warm up there’s space near the stadium, not too far,” he continued, gesturing vaguely towards an info desk. “But go ahead and get settled in! We’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”

As they picked up their room keys, Piers looked at Raihan, brows furrowed. “Did Leon manage to set this up all himself?”

“Yeah,” Raihan said with a breath of laughter. “I didn’t think he had it in him, but he said he wanted to do it all himself. Something about thanking everyone.” He shrugged. “I mean, so far nothing’s blown up, so I’d say we’re starting strong.”

“We’ve only been here a half hour,” Piers said, raising his eyebrows.

“That was the bet for something to go off.”

Piers and Marnie headed upstairs to their room together, tossing suitcases onto their respective beds - sleeping preferences were well established enough between them that it almost went without saying. Piers splayed out on his and flipped through the program. “Oh! Uh, Raihan and I are matched off tomorrow.”

“Cool. Who am I with?” Marnie was looking at a  _ Hobston Getaway  _ pamphlet, swinging her legs off the end of the bed.

“Gordie, looks like,” he said. He dropped the program aside. “Want to get out and explore?”

He could hardly wait.


	3. Chapter 3

Monday morning came, and Piers stretched as he sat in the green room, sending out Obstagoon to ruffle his ears and hopefully allow the Pokemon to get some of his boundless energy out before they headed into the match. He’d barely eaten any breakfast, much to Marnie’s disapproval, far too excited - and nervous - to face off against Raihan again. He’d planned the strategy out, guessing on which three Pokemon the dragon-type trainer would pick, but at the end it would require some lucky plays even if he managed to read him correctly.

A league official stepped into the room and waved Piers over. “It’s time to begin the match, a set three on three by official league rules. Are you ready to go?”

Piers nodded, returning Obstagoon to his pokeball.

As he stepped onto the pitch, he could feel the roof open into a dizzyingly tall set of stands that seemed almost to float above him. The stadium was impressively crafted for how old it was - he could feel the wind around him as he moved towards the center.

Raihan was back in his leader’s uniform, grinning ear-to-ear as he moved forward to shake hands with Piers. It felt hard  _ not  _ to smile back at him, Piers thought. The crowd roared; they took their sides. His hand fell to his first pokeball.

He’d had a strategy in the works for ages now, honestly, watching how Raihan battled and moved through challengers.  _ Beat him at his own game. _ He knew how he used the weather, and he had a few ideas on how to twist it himself.

“Go, Skuntank!”

“Sandaconda!”

Piers grinned. Raihan was, fortunately, predictable. His opponent raised his eyebrows at him as if to say  _ really? The poison type again?  _ Piers shrugged, looking casual. “C’mon, Skuntank, use toxic.”

Skuntank ran for the snake Pokemon, while Sandaconda began to puff up. “Sandstorm!” Raihan called, and the sand began to swirl around it, but Skuntank had landed the hit. He stumbled backwards, baring his teeth as sand got in his eyes.

“Stay focused,” Piers commanded. The Sandaconda couldn’t move as quickly, even with the benefit of a sandstorm obscuring Skuntank’s vision. “Crunch.”

Skuntank charged again, looking for his target. “Headbutt, now!” His teeth connected with Sandaconda’s attack and both Pokemon were sent reeling.

“Again,” Piers called, feeling his throat get scratchy from the sand. His heart was racing. Raihan grinned.

“Get him with a dig.”

Piers gritted his teeth.  _ Sorry, buddy,  _ he tried to communicate.  _ We’ll get him, though.  _ The Sandaconda had burrowed, leaving Skuntank to look around helplessly, waiting for the hit to come. He stepped back just as Sandaconda’s head emerged to hit him with full force.

When the sand cleared, Piers readied Skuntank’s pokeball again, giving it an apologetic squeeze as the fainted Pokemon returned.  _ Going with the plan. _

Scrafty appeared next. “Y’know what to do,” he said, sending his foot out to one side. Scrafty, never one to be outdone in speed, flew at Sandaconda with a low kick before Raihan could so much as call out a move. He looked a little surprised as the Sandaconda hit the ground hard, but quickly swung his arm down to indicate a dig while the Pokemon was already low to the ground. Sandaconda struggled to burrow under this time, Scrafty chasing him down until he disappeared under the battlefield.

His exit was sloppier this time, and Scrafty sidestepped the brunt of the attack, though still getting caught on Sandaconda’s immense ruff.  _ The toxic is doin’ it’s job,  _ Piers thought with a satisfied grin. “Finish him!”

Sandaconda had no time to respond. Scrafty’s kick connected and, with a wash of relief, Piers realized it had been enough. Raihan met his eye across the field, nodding and raising his eyebrows. Scrafty looked even more enthusiastic than before. Piers returned a cocky smile.

“Gigalith, go!” Raihan tossed the pokeball up and the mountainous creature appeared. Piers opened his mouth to advise, but Scrafty was already running towards it, readying another kick.

“Wait!” But the kick connected, and one of Gigalith’s knees buckled. He roared furiously, boulders beginning to form at its feet as Raihan’s call of  _ rock slide  _ cut through the building noise of the stadium. Scrafty had no time to react, hurled backwards.

“C’mon, you can do it, stay up,” Piers cried. Scrafty struggled. “You can do it!” The Pokemon managed to stand again, panting. Piers laughed in relief. “One more, that’s all!” Scrafty launched himself at Gigalith again.

Gigalith fell down, but as he hit the ground, Scrafty swayed and collapsed from the shaking floor. The walls themselves seemed to creak as Gigalith fell. 

_ Down to one each. _ Piers and Raihan eyed each other again, a challenge in both of their faces, and Piers’ heart seemed to pick up tempo as he reached for Obstagoon’s pokeball.

This was the part they’d perhaps practiced the most. Obstagoon threw a glance over his shoulder at Piers, tongue lolling excitedly as he turned to face Raihan’s finisher, Duraladon.

Piers nodded to his Pokemon, crossing his arms in front of his chest as Obstagoon did the same. Duraladon lunged at him, and Piers felt his stomach drop,  _ please let this have worked _ , but when the dust cleared Obstagoon was unharmed and Duraladon’s armor seemed...dented, even.

_ Wait...why hadn’t Raihan Gigantimaxed him? _

Piers looked up at Raihan, who gave him a nod and a smile.  _ Oh. _

Raihan...really had made good on his promise.

Despite the heat of the battle raging, his look made him feel somehow warmer.

“Let’s go again,” Raihan shouted, the noise of the crowd almost deafening. Duraladon raised its heavy arm to strike. Piers looked down again quickly, making a silent motion to Obstagoon. He watched as the massive Pokemon leapt over him.

  
Then he struck. The chop was powerful, right to the Duraladon’s front, where the armor looked most worn. The massive dragon stumbled, its arm sailing over Obstagoon’s head, collapsing into the ground with a shudder.

Piers blinked, disbelieving. That had actually been enough?

“Duraladon is unable to battle! Piers is the winner,” the announcer’s voice boomed, and the crowd went wild. Piers walked toward the center of the field, almost in a trance, as Raihan grinned at him. He wiped his brow.

“That was  _ amazing _ , Piers,” he said, a little breathlessly. “I really gave it my all. How’d you corner me so well on all my moves, huh?”

Piers could only smile back, rubbing the back of his neck. “Got lucky at the end, there.”

“Don’t sell me short. That was more than luck.” Raihan put an arm around him, and his stomach suddenly seemed to flip over. “C’mon, let’s get a picture!”

It must’ve been the excitement of winning finally sinking in, but Piers somehow felt his heart pounding even harder than it had during the battle. He looked up at the rotom phone to give a little smile as the shutter clicked, having a hard time focusing on anything other than Raihan’s arm around his waist. It was nice.

_ Huh. _

Quickly, in an attempt to salvage his train of thought, he added “L-listen, it was...good of you t’not use your dynamax. I, uh, really appreciated it.”

“Of course.” Raihan gave him a thumbs up. “It’s just fair and all that.” His other hand still seemed to linger on his waist briefly, before he caught the rotom phone and tucked it away.

“Hey, if you want t’try again with your dragon but bigger, bet I could still take ya,” Piers added, a glint in his eye.

Raihan blinked at him, then smirked. “Oh yeah?”

“Why not,” Piers said, shrugging.

Raihan gave a little laugh. “Oh, it’s  _ so  _ on then. Same place, one on one, after dinner tonight?”

Piers lifted his chin, grinning. “You’re on.” 

* * *

  
  


He found himself looking around for Raihan as he climbed up the (somewhat rickety, honestly) stands for Marnie’s match, a towel draped around his shoulders. He didn’t seem to be anywhere nearby, until he spotted him sitting with Leon across the stadium. Oh. Of course, they were close. Why on  _ earth _ did he care, anyway?

He plopped his head in his hands and tried to focus on the match.

Marnie defeated Gordie handily, only losing her first Toxicroak in the process. It was a great battle, though Gordie looked a little consternated. Piers made sure to cheer as loudly as he could for her victory. He was proud!

The day felt long, though, and eventually Piers and Marnie slipped away from the stadium for a break - the noise was beginning to give even Piers a headache, and Marnie wanted to see some of the town. “Do you think there are any wild Pokemon around here we could check out?” she asked, flipping through another pamphlet as they stood outside some kind of historic house. Clearly she wouldn’t admit to it, but he suspected she was finding  _ Historic Hobston _ about as enthralling as he was, though she’d been the one to pick it out.

“Sure, dunno,” Piers said, pulling his phone out to check the time. Marnie looked cross.

“Are you waiting on an important text, huh? What’re you checking for?” She tapped her foot.

Piers rubbed the back of his neck, looking at her apologetically. “Sorry, sorry. Just, uh, didn’t want to be late to dinner.”

Marnie frowned. “Really?”

“Yeah. Raihan and I agreed to meet up after dinner for a little practice match, is all.”

“Already? You just fought earlier,” Marnie said, raising her eyebrows. 

“He’ll use dynamax this time. Dared him to.” A dopey smile came across his face. “‘m surprised he agreed, but.”

Marnie squinted at him. “I guess.” Her mouth quirked up. “Can I come have a watch?”

“Nah, get some sleep,” he said, ruffling her hair. “We’ll have to see what pairs’re up tomorrow.” Marnie grumbled, but didn’t argue.

* * *

  
  


He’d bid Marnie goodnight after dinner, smiling to himself. There was something about this that felt silly and childish in a sneaking-out-after-dark way, though Leon had said they were free to practice whenever they needed to in a hand-wavy sort of way. It was fun.

He sent out Obstagoon again as they entered the stadium a second time, ruffling the fur behind his ears. It was nice and quiet now, the yawning expanse of night sky above them broken only by stars and a few flickering stadium lights (that probably needed to be replaced, honestly).

Raihan appeared out of the tunnel behind him, dropping a hand onto Piers’ shoulder as he came up beside him.

“You ready to get crushed?” He could hear the smile in his voice, which felt rather close to his ear. A shiver ran down Piers’ spine that he tried to reason away to the night air.

“Speak for yourself, hm?” He turned to him, pushing his hair out of his face. “We’re rarin’ to go.”

“Eager to meet your demise,” Raihan teased, putting his hands behind his head. “I was just getting warmed up earlier.”

“Me too,” Piers volleyed, his eyes sparkling. “Lookin’ forward to this.”

Raihan raised his pokeball, raising his eyebrows at Piers. “You sure?”

“You think we can’t take ya? You’ll hurt his feelings.” He covered Obstagoon’s ears.

Raihan laughed, and Duraladon popped out. “Alright, alright. Let’s get this show on the road, hmm?” He tapped two fingers to the dynamax band around his wrist, and Duraladon began to grow.

And grow.

  
And grow.

Piers swallowed. He really hadn’t remembered it being this big, so much that its base hardly fit in the circumference of the stadium, its head far out of the roof. Duraladon swung its tail, and Raihan laughed, but Obstagoon looked back at Piers in panic.

“W-wait, Raihan, ‘old on,” Piers called, looking up at the commentator’s box above him. The wooden beams were dangerously close to its leg. “Rai-”

His voice was drowned out by Duraladon’s now even larger roar. It took a massive step towards Obstagoon - directly through the beams supporting it.

_ Oh no. _

Piers lunged for Obstagoon, tackling him to the ground in an attempt to protect him. The platform above them dangled, creaked, and then began to fall - directly onto them. 


	4. Chapter 4

The platform crashed to the ground and landed in a heap of broken beams. Piers was momentarily grateful that it seemed to have missed them, before being whacked in the back of the head with one.  _ Most of them _ . He felt a little nauseous. Obstagoon, luckily, seemed fine, shoving out from under him to snuffle at his face concernedly.

Raihan was kneeling beside him almost as quickly. “Oh Arceus, Piers, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry,” he kept repeating, panicked. “What - where are you hurt?”

“‘m fine,” Piers mumbled, rubbing the back of his head, and - oh, yep, that was blood. Raihan’s eyes widened. “Sh-shit. I’m going to take you to urgent care.”

“Don’t need all  _ that, _ ” Piers said, fumbling for Obstagoon’s pokeball. “Come back, here, buddy…” Raihan’s fingers were fumbling over his phone. “I-I’m just gonna call a cab, uh, here,” he tried to prop Piers up against him, and Piers tried valiantly to show that he could stay sitting just fine but Raihan was really strong, apparently. “Do you remember who you are? Where are we? Who am I?”

“No idea,” Piers deadpanned, but after seeing the look of terror on Raihan’s face he added quickly, “Yeah, Raihan, I’m fine. Swear it.” His head hurt like hell, but he was definitely still conscious. Raihan looked worse off than he did. Clearly he was not a fan of the sight of blood.

“I’m still going to take you.” Before Piers could argue any further, Raihan had...picked him up? And he was definitely not injured enough to not splutter indignantly. His stomach was doing something funny again, and he leaned into Raihan almost involuntarily. He didn’t weigh that much, but he’d lifted him like it was nothing? Piers swallowed hard.  _ I should get hit in the head more often,  _ he thought, followed by a resounding mental  _ what? _

Maybe the injury was affecting his thoughts after all.

  
  


They settled into the cab for a ride to the hospital, several towns over. He was glad he wasn’t bleeding out, or he was fairly sure he would’ve died in the length of the car trip - how did these people survive out here? Raihan kept glancing at him worriedly and apologizing, and combined with the brushing of their legs Piers found there wasn’t much room left for rational thought anyway.

They sat in the waiting room of the hospital to be seen, and Raihan still hadn’t said much except to apologize. It was distressing how long he’d gone without talking about himself. “Hey. Raihan,” Piers said, leaning on him a little. “You’re scarin’ me now. Talk about something. We’ve got time, and I’m not dying.” The front desk had given him a cloth to press to the back of his head, though they’d said he’d probably need a stitch or two.

“Man, I’m just...I had no idea that’d happen,” Raihan muttered. “Should’ve known it wasn’t built for really big dynamax ‘mons, though. I wasn’t thinking.”

“You saved someone else the trouble of finding out,” Piers said, sensibly. “Imagine Leon’s Charizard in there. Disaster waitin’ to happen.”

Raihan laughed a little at that and nodded. “I texted him to let him know what happened, by the way. He’ll come check up on us if we’re too long.”

“Well, think we’ve done everyone a favor after all.” Piers smiled and patted his arm, and Raihan looked up at him a little less sadly.

“Your hair probably cushioned you from the worst of it,” Raihan added. He patted the top of his head very gently, as though it were an egg. 

Piers snorted. “Yeah, I know, it’s like I’ve got a Pokemon back there, I’ve heard it before,” he said, rolling his eyes.

Raihan shook his head. “Nah, I just think it’s neat. I like it. It’s...you know, you!”

“Really?” Piers stared down at the hand in his lap, suddenly embarrassed. That was...nice of him to say. He was used to getting teased about it, mostly in good humor, and he didn’t really care at all, but...it wasn’t really what he was used to hearing.

“Yeah, man! I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Well, you weren’t lying about crushing me tonight,” Piers said, a glint in his eye. “Not what I was expecting, but I’ll give it to ya.”

Raihan rubbed the back of his neck and laughed sheepishly.

  
  


They sewed Piers up fairly quickly, and sent him off with a few painkillers and a note to come back right away if he had anything funny happen to his vision or focus. It was late by this point, and Piers yawned as they waited for another cab back, realizing he’d forgotten to text Marnie. She’d sent a handful of worried messages, but it seemed like Leon had reached her. He tapped out  _ coming back now w/ raihan, im sorted, hope ur asleep. _

Raihan walked him up to his room back at the hotel, and put his hands in his hoodie pocket as Piers pulled out the room key. “Hey, Piers, uh. I’m really sorry again.” He shuffled his feet, as Piers shook his head. “Raihan. Not your fault, ‘m not angry at all.” He yawned again. “Sleep well?”

“Sleep well,” Raihan answered, then carefully stepped forward to give him a gentle hug. Piers hugged him back, a little more firmly, and they hugged for a good moment. It was a nice hug. Piers found he would’ve liked to stay that way for hours, potentially. Raihan pulled away and gave him a small smile and a little wave.

Marnie was not asleep when he stepped into the room, her eyes round as she looked up at him and charged towards him with a second hug, this one decidedly more forceful than Raihan’s.

“Oof. Easy,” he said, patting her on the head. Marnie shoved her face into his chest.

“Scared me,” she muttered into his shirt. “You’re never careful enough.”

“‘m sorry, Marnie. Should’ve told ya sooner.” He gave her a squeeze.

She frowned up at him, a small quiver in her voice. “What happened? Leon said the stadium fell on you. It sounded real bad.”

  
Piers shrugged, shaking his head. “Only a’piece of the stadium. That dragon of Raihan’s was just too big.” It was already becoming a funny memory, honestly. Marnie snorted. “Wonder if that’d happen back in Spikemuth.”

“I hope not.” Marnie crossed the room again to sit on her bed, peering at him. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Right as rain. Said I’ll be fine to battle again day after tomorrow for the next round.” He gave her a thumbs up.

His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out. His heart jumped again when  _ Raihan _ crossed the screen, and he opened the attached photo.

It was a picture of Duraladon in the corner of Raihan’s hotel room, looking sheepish. The message read:  _ he wanted 2 say sorry 2. goodnight!!  _ And then a dragon emoji, several stars, and a sleepy face.

“Why are you smiling so big?” Marnie was trying to peer over his shoulder and Piers quickly closed the message. “‘s nothing!”

“Hmm…” She folded her arms. “Didn’t look like nothing.” 

“Don’t be nosy.” Piers tossed his phone onto his bed. Marnie huffed.

“I’ll only let you go ‘cause you just got hit on the head. ‘M tired.” She yawned, and Piers yawned, and they settled down to sleep. Rolling so his back faced Marnie, Piers picked up his phone again.

_ apology accepted, too big dragon. _

He was still smiling as he fell asleep.

* * *

  
  


A buzz from his phone awoke him the next morning. Piers cracked an eyelid.

_ ur gonna make him self conscious abt his size and ill make u pay for his therapy  _ was followed by several angry face emojis and a few laughing ones too. Piers giggled.

_ he’d crush the therapist _ , he wrote back.

_ noooo!!!!! _

Marnie was beginning to stir beside him, sitting up in bed. “G’morning,” she mumbled sleepily.

“Hey,” Piers replied, setting his phone aside. “Do you wanna watch all the matches today, or…?”

“Actually, Victor’s arriving today,” Marnie said, picking up her own phone. “We were gonna do something with Bede.”

“Ah,” Piers said, stretching. “Well, you guys go’n have fun then.” He supposed he’d watch some of them, maybe work on the new song. The painkillers seemed to be working well enough.

_ btw what r ur plans 2day? want to meet up at the breakfast  _ scrolled across his screen, and he felt himself smiling against his will again. He could be persuaded otherwise.

The bed suddenly sagged as Marnie pounced onto his phone. “You were doing the dopey smile again!”

How did she move so quietly? Piers tried to snatch it back. “Hey-” 

“Oh, from Raihan, huh?” Marnie seemed to appraise the text, then dropped the phone again, satisfied.

“He’s just checking up after last night, that’s all,” Piers said quickly. Marnie narrowed her eyes. “Why’s that got you smiling so much?”

“I….I don’t know!” He might know, and now that Marnie had actually said it, something he didn’t really want to think about was starting to click. “‘m just in a….good mood right now, I guess,” he finished lamely.

“Whatever you say,” Marnie said, giving him a look and heading off to pick up her bag. “I’m gonna see if Victor’s train’s come in yet. Don’t keep Raihan waiting!” Piers opened his mouth to retort, but she stuck her tongue out at him and shut the door behind her.

_ The nerve.  _ Piers hunched his shoulders, let out some combination of a groan and a sigh, and put his face in his hands. They were friends, right? They’d always been friendly as league folks went, anyway, and they had fun battling each other. That was all! Plus the fact that his mind kept fixating on the concept of Raihan running his hands through his hair whenever he wasn’t focused on something else ever since they’d talked about it last night, but that was just a weird extra. All friends were really happy to see each other, of course.

Raihan was waiting in the hotel lobby when he came downstairs, giving him his signature grin. “Hey!” They headed in to eat together, chatting about various things, though Raihan did stop a few times to give him a concerned look and ask “you’re still feeling better today?” It was sweet. Friendly. Piers appreciated it just a little, even if Raihan’s concerns were unfounded.

They walked to the stadium, arriving conveniently at the start of Nessa and Bede’s match. “I’m glad we’re here for this one, actually. Been wanting to introduce a rain dance-type of pair to my team.” Raihan adjusted his headband.

“What got you started on your weather-doubles?” Piers asked. “‘Mean, you usually only get one type of weather in a team. ‘N the league’s usually stiff about...well, everything, let alone a new format.”

Raihan scratched at his chin, looking sheepish. “Honestly?” He pushed his hair back, shaking his head. “It started...well, because it was the only format I could reliably beat Leon in at first, to be fair. Was nice to have the upper hand for once.” He frowned. “But, y’know, I guess I like, started to like seeing my Pokemon cooperate, I guess? Maybe that’s silly, but it feels like they’re...working together, I dunno. Is that, like, weird?”

Piers blinked at him. “Nah, I don’t think it’s weird at all. That’s...nice to hear, actually.”

Raihan gave him a soft smile that made Piers’ stomach flip over again. He turned back to face the match, where the roar of the crowd was building - Bede was up 2, but Nessa’s Drednaw was staring down the field now. A chagrined Leon had apparently announced to the whole stadium earlier that Dynamaxing was officially off for the rest of the tournament, for safety reasons.

“This is her special one, I think,” Raihan commented, “one that can usually Gigantimax. It’ll be able to move faster now that she’s got the rain set up.” Sure enough, the slow and unwieldy-looking Pokemon was able to lumber and slide across the field to catch Bede’s Reuniclus off-guard. He dispatched the psychic-type quickly.

Piers frowned, impressed. “How’d you know it could do that?”

Raihan shrugged. “Guess I read about it when I was thinking about who to add to the rotation? I dunno. This is its hidden ability, and I kinda like raising unusual Pokemon.”

“That why your Duraladon is freakishly big?”

Raihan pouted at him.

The crowd roared again as Bede managed to knock out Nessa’s Drednaw with his Hattarene, but it’d ended up being a closer match than they’d expected. Piers and Raihan headed down the stands together, where the matchups had been posted on a large screen in the lobby. 

“Hey, Piers.” Raihan put a hand on his shoulder, grinning. “Look who you got matched up with tomorrow!”

Piers looked up, and chuckled. “Oh, that’ll be a fun one.” He sighed. “Every older sibling dreams of being crushed by their little sister on live television.”


	5. Chapter 5

Across the pitch, Marnie gave Piers a determined smile. She’d warned him this morning that she wouldn’t go easy on him just to make him feel better, and Piers had promised to return the favor, though he knew he wouldn’t need to.

Now, as Morpeko - her second - faced off against Obstagoon - his third, Piers knew he’d have to pull out all the stops. “Obstruct!” he called, but Obstagoon faltered slightly - already growing tired after Marnie’s Liepard, who they’d barely been able to hit. The shield was incomplete. Morpeko barreled into him like a tiny ball of fury, and Obstagoon was thrown backwards.

Piers stepped forward, ready to catch him if he went flying. The Pokemon struggled to his feet again determinedly, looking back at Piers for approval.

_ You’re doing great. _

The call of “brick break” came from both sides of the field at once, as Obstagoon stood his ground and Morpeko tore towards him. They both lifted their arms to strike, each struggling to make headway on the other, until -

Silence. Both Pokemon stood looking at each other and blinked for a moment. 

Then Obstagoon collapsed, the stands erupted, and the voice announcing the winner was almost drowned out entirely by the noise. Piers pulled out Obstagoon’s pokeball and smiled at Marnie. They moved to the center to shake hands, but Marnie pulled him into a hug instead, before seeming to remember she had a brooding image to maintain and tugging away.

Piers ruffled her hair enthusiastically when they headed off the pitch. “That was really great. Y’read me like a book.” Marnie tried to duck away from the assault on her hair and jabbed Piers in the side. “Y’were pretty good too. I had fun.” Her eyes twinkled even as she straightened her bangs, sticking her tongue out at him.

“Piers! Marnie!” Leon was heading towards them, beaming. “Great match out there. It really cheered me up.” He looked to Piers. “She got you, huh?”

“She got me,” Piers said, grinning. “Not that ’m surprised.”

“Can’t thank you both enough for coming here,” Leon said again. “It’s brilliant to watch you two battle. You’ll both be at the dinner tonight, yeah? Got to get it all sorted still.”

The Dinner, as it was spoken of, was everyone’s least favorite part of these events and usually a competition for who could get the most colorful excuse approved to get out of it. It was meant to be a “time to get to meet the fans”, but the tickets to them were usually so absurdly expensive that it was really just a poorly veiled excuse to kiss up to the sponsors and keep the money coming. Piers had forgotten, or tried to block out that this was a part of the arrangement to begin with.

Leon frowned. “Nessa already said she sprained her ankle because the cobblestones were so uneven, and that she really needs the night to keep it propped up.” Piers stifled a laugh, avoiding Marnie’s eye before he lost his composure. He was usually never one to be outdone in the excuse department, but…

Leon looked so downtrodden. And he’d had to arrange the whole thing himself.  _ And Raihan wouldn’t miss it.  _ That third reason perhaps made the most compelling case. “Uh,” Piers began finally. “Wouldn’t want miss it.”

The former champion brightened immediately. “Oh, perfect,” he said, clapping. “I’m sure we’ll have quite the turnout! I love meeting everyone at these.”   
  


_ You must be the only one.  _ If Piers was making a face, Leon didn’t seem to notice, looking around for where he’d come in. “Er...which way’s back to the stands, again? The next round’s starting.”

Marnie pointed to the door on the left, and Leon beamed and waved, turning and immediately going into the right-hand door. Marnie raised a hand to stop him but he was already rushing up the stairs, and Piers patted her arm. “It’s okay. He’ll find his way out the building eventually. Maybe the break will do him good.”

* * *

  
  


Piers rifled through his suitcase, already a mess after the days they’d been there. He was  _ sure  _ he’d packed a tie somewhere. Ugh. The uncomfortable suit wasn’t even the worst part of these dinners, but it was definitely up there.

He pulled the suit jacket over himself - somewhat ill-fitting, it’d used to be his dad’s - and fumbled with the tie, slightly rumpled from its home at the very bottom of his bag. The knot usually took a few attempts for him.

Marnie stepped out of the bathroom, giving the skirt of her black dress a little twirl. “How does it look?”

“Looks lovely,” Piers offered, looking up for just long enough to drop the progress on this tie of the tie. He cursed under his breath. “Ugh.”

Marnie frowned, sighing. “You really hate these, huh?” Piers couldn’t tell if she was referring to formal dinners or wearing ties, but either was fair enough.

“Jus’ a little,” Piers muttered. Although he was still in a considerably better mood than usual, for some strange and mysterious reason. “Sorry, Marnie. I’ll try and put on a better face. ‘S not  _ that _ bad, I s’pose. Just a pain in the arse.”

Marnie played with the end of her dress, trying to get the hem to lay flat. She glanced up at the clock. “Do you think we should get going?” She picked up her clutch from the bed.   
  


“If you want to, I guess.”  _ She’s way overthinking this,  _ Piers thought, a trait so despised in himself that was all too clearly reflected in her. The Dinner probably hadn’t been so bad the first time for him, though. He patted her on the shoulder. “Let’s hop to it, shall we?”

One of the immense and baroque hotel ballrooms had been designated especially for the evening. The lights were lowered, and small, circular tables were set (with more forks than were strictly necessary for anyone) all around the room.

Possibly the most irritating part of the entire event was that all leaders and league members were required to sit at different tables to “socialize” with the old and wealthy attendees. Piers had briefly hoped that wouldn’t extend to him, but - nope, one of the tables was designated for him as well. He groaned inwardly, turning back towards the entryway to wait out with Marnie for as long as possible.

Just then, the doors opened and Raihan and Leon both appeared. Both of them looked rather good - much as they liked to jibe him about it, in all honestly, Leon somehow managed to pull off whatever he wanted to wear - but Raihan looked...particularly stunning. His suit was a deep crimson accented with gold, and his hair looked especially sof-  _ neat _ . He looked almost relieved to see Piers and made a beeline for him once inside.

“Hey,” he said, putting a hand on Piers’ arm. “I’m glad you’re here.” Piers swallowed, but if Raihan had noticed him staring he made no comment. “Leon’s been running around all day and I’m worried he’s coming undone, mate. I hope we all survive this.”

Piers gave a raspy laugh, but Raihan looked at least half-serious. Leon was at the front of the room now, stretching his hands out in welcome. “See you later,” Raihan whispered, and he and Piers both exchanged a  _ save me _ look before they were whisked off to their individual tables.

It was always a little awkward to get started talking to these people. A lot of “thank you for your support,” polite laughter, and chewing food longer than necessary characterized the majority of the conversation. Piers had never been the easiest sell with this crowd, truly a point of pride for him - everything from his appearance down seemed as though it might be an offence to their sensibilities. Fortunately, somewhere after the main course the sponsors would seem to forget he was there in favor of discussing their many properties on islands off the coast of Kalos, which was a perfectly unrelatable conversation to him.

Piers glanced around the room. Marnie seemed to be doing alright - her expression wasn’t one of absolute misery despite the fact she wasn’t smiling, though that was to be expected. He searched for Raihan’s table in the other half of the room, but couldn’t spot him.  _ Where’d he go? _ Piers fiddled with his dessert - or tea, or something - spoon and waited to catch his eye.

But Raihan didn’t seem to be returning. Piers mumbled an “excuse me” and stood up, turning and heading for the outer door at the back of the room. Some fresh air would be nice right about now, and he wondered if the gym leader had had the same idea.

He stepped outside into the cool night, letting the door click shut and the ambient music playing inside fade into muffled obscurity. A figure was sitting on the bench overlooking one of Hobston’s many charming, albeit identical, streets, and Piers headed over to it.

Raihan turned, immediately looking guilty, but his face relaxed when he saw it was only Piers. “Oh - hey,” he said, letting out a small laugh. “Do you want to sit out for a bit too?”

“Absolutely.” Piers sat down with a sigh, looking at him.

Raihan shook his head. “I - this might sound like, stupid, but I really can’t stand these things. I feel bad.”

Piers snorted. “Are you kidding me? Don’t think anyone can. ‘Specially not me, it’s really not my scene.” Raihan nodded at that.

“Seems about right,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m glad you came out here, though. I’d much rather see you than all of them.” 

“Me too. Usually I’d make up an excuse and get out of it, but it’s nice to have you here.” Why had he said that? They weren’t even allowed to sit at the same table, so even if it was true, it was -

But Raihan’s eyes brightened. “I’m glad to hear it, Piers. This is already probably the best one of these dinners I’ve been to, then.” His eyes were light, but his smile seemed genuine.

Piers rubbed the back of his head. “Well - same here, for lack of a better contender, at least. Although,” he mused, “that one in Wyndon two, three years ago is strong competition for humor value at least.” 

Raihan grinned. “You mean the one with the karaoke after? That was classic. Nessa’ll never live down picking the most explicit song and then having Rose walk in.”

“Should find a mic and do that one again.” Piers looked at him, amused.

“You sang really well, though. I mean, not that it was a surprise or anything, but it was probably the first time I’d heard you sing up close.”

“Should hope it was alright, considering I do it for a living now,” Piers mumbled. He willed his face not to be red, or for such a small compliment not to make him so warm.

But that was probably impossible, coming from Raihan. He looked at him curiously for a moment. “You’re hiding in your hair.”

“What?”

“You almost like, disappear into it sometimes when you’re embarrassed?”

“I do?”

“Yeah,” Raihan said, grinning. “Here - found you…” He slowly moved to lift it out of his face.

Their eyes met, transfixed. A cool breeze reminded Piers of how warm his face was, and how close it was to Raihan’s now. Raihan looked as dumbfounded as he felt, lovely clear blue eyes trapped in his own, until Piers’ eyes slipped downwards to his lips and he wished suddenly, desperately, that Raihan would just lean forward and close that gap between them-

The door opened behind them, and Raihan jolted. Piers heard his heart beating so painfully loudly that he almost missed who it was. Raihan jumped up. “Wait- what happened?”

It was Marnie. “Leon just - just heard there’s some kind of problem near the power spot. Says it’s malfunctioning. Pokemon are dynamaxing again.” She blinked at them, wide-eyed. “He said to get you, Piers.”


	6. Chapter 6

Piers stood up quickly. “How could that be?”

Marnie shook her head. “I...guess Leon didn’t shut the power spot off correctly after we stopped using dynamax. The Pokemon ‘round here aren’t used to that kind of energy.”

“So they’re wild?” Raihan looked at Piers. “Let me come too. Maybe I’ll be some help.”

Piers nodded, wanting Raihan there with him desperately anyway. 

Marnie led them to Leon, who was waiting in the hotel lobby among a throng of confused dinner guests and gym leaders. “They’re down by the path near the stadium,” he said, voice already going hoarse. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Piers wanted, and was trying, to stay focused on the task at hand. He really was. But it truly felt like the largest threat at the moment was the glaring realization of how desperately he’d wanted Raihan to kiss him, how pretty his eyes were, and  _ oh Arceus I like Raihan. Way more than a friend.  _ Even in his desperate state of denial he managed to logic through the fact that he’d never wanted to kiss any of his other friends, or found their eyes particularly engaging.

Victor was already there when he and Raihan arrived, his Inteleon out as he surveyed the area. “Thank goodness,” he said, wide-eyed. “There are at least three or four.”

Piers nodded. “Which do you think we should start with?”

Victor opened his mouth to speak, cringing as a shout rang out from a nearby house.

“Let’s go with whatever that one is,” Piers said, beckoning the two of them to follow.

It appeared that the massive dynamax Yamper had not destroyed anything yet, and the shout had been more one of shock that the massive (but still endearing) creature was outside at all. With all three of them working together, it wouldn’t be too difficult a place to start. Raihan sent out his Sandaconda, smartly, and managed to take it down almost singlehandedly. 

The second - an Eldegoss - proved to be somewhat more of a challenge, even with Victor’s Charizard. A strong hit with his tail made direct contact with the Pokemon, but suddenly, the lizard froze in midair. Victor cried out as it looked as though Charizard might drop out of the sky.

“I think it’s got spores,” Raihan called out across the field. “Don’t get too close or it’ll hurt him worse!”

Piers and Victor nodded. Charizard stabilized, and launched a longer range attack that seemed to weaken the Eldegoss substantially. It cried out, launching a leaf tornado directly into Obstagoon.

Dark Pulse was one of Obstagoon’s weakest attacks, but it was also the safest bet. Fortunately it was enough, and though Obstagoon stumbled slightly, he managed to take it down. Piers patted his pokeball as he pulled him back.

“Brilliant,” Piers said, nodding to both Raihan and Victor. “So there’s a third?”

A massive groan came in answer.

The three whipped around to see a Drednaw, looking enraged. Raihan stepped in front of Piers - almost protectively, but he knew it was only his mind making something out of nothing.  _ I can’t think about this right now. I can’t even look at him. _

Victor sent out his Inteleon, who immediately launched a quick water attack on the massive creature. Piers had chosen Skuntank, mostly as he suspected Obstagoon was more injured then he let on.

The Drednaw launched itself into a full-body attack at Inteleon. When the dust cleared, Piers felt a jolt of fear. Inteleon - Victor’s ace - had fainted.

_ What is this thing? _

While Victor desperately tried to revive the fainted Pokemon, Piers and Raihan looked to each other. “Let’s try and hit it from both sides,” Piers called, gesturing for Raihan’s Duraladon to approach from the left. Skuntank crouched, ready to strike.

Raihan nodded determinedly, and made a motion for Duraladon to approach. “Now,” Piers called, and both Pokemon lunged. Drednaw’s massive head swung around, unsure of which one to strike, before the attack hit him with full force. Its front legs buckled. Massive jaws snapped at Skuntank’s tail, catching the Pokemon’s fur. Skuntank squealed in panic.

“Metal claw,” Raihan shouted, and the crushing weight of Duraladon’s front arm fell onto the Drednaw’s shell. It roared, stumbled, and fell.

The massive Pokemon returned to a rather normal size. Piers turned someone ran towards it. It was a small girl, rubbing the creature’s head. She looked at the three still facing it, blinking owlishly.

_ So this one had had a trainer. _ That explained the strength. Piers and Raihan exchanged a look. The girl was clinging to her Drednaw, speaking quietly to it.

“You...okay there?” Raihan tried. The girl just stared at them, then stood up quickly and returned her Pokemon.

“Thanks for fixing her,” she said, then ran off down the street the way she’d come, shouting for her mum to come hear about how some weird guys came and shrunk Dreddy.

Piers grinned. Even Victor, who’d looked rather shellshocked, was giggling. “Well, fellow weird guys, think we got ‘em. I don’t hear any more.” The grassy path had returned to relative quiet. “Shall we head back?”

* * *

  
  


Piers and Raihan found themselves wandering into the empty stadium, and Raihan slumped down onto the lowest set of bleachers. Piers flopped down beside him. Raihan had hung his head down, and shook it, as though trying to get the tension out.

Piers laughed. Everything about this night had been absolutely surreal and absurd. Had it really only been this morning he and Marnie had battled? It felt like years.

Raihan lifted his head, looking at him incredulously. “What? What’s funny?”

Whether it was nerves or sheer exhaustion, Piers was incapable of stopping laughing now. He laughed and laughed and watched as a grin spread across Raihan’s own face and he began to laugh too, amid the repeated “what? What is it?” until they were both absolutely disconsolate. What a day.

The relief of having successfully quelled the Pokemon was beginning to set in too, and when they could finally breathe again, the pair continued smiling at each other.

“That was literally insane. Today has been insane.” Raihan shook his head, his eyes sparkling.

“I can’t believe we managed that,” Piers murmured. “You were really impressive out there.”

“Impressive? You  _ killed _ it, Piers.” Raihan let out another incredulous laugh. “We really couldn’t have done it without you calling the shots.” He gazed at him. “You’re impressive.”

Piers shook his head, smiling. “You’re amazing - you had it down.” His arm was still lingering around Raihan’s shoulders, but he made no attempt to move it. “Just...really happy it all worked out.” The Pokemon had all been alright, reuniting that girl and her Drednaw, Raihan by his side-

“God, Piers, I’m so happy I could just kiss you.”

His brain short circuited.  _ Oh,  _ was all he could think. “Y-yeah?”

Raihan leaned in, swallowing, as if he hadn’t meant to say that quite so directly. He dropped his eyes. “I mean, uh - can I?”

Piers nodded. Raihan lifted his eyes to meet Piers’ again, and Piers tipped his head up to Raihan’s. His mouth felt dry. Then soft lips brushed against his own, fumbling.

His heart fluttered, and he reached up to pull him closer, placing his other hand against Raihan’s smooth cheek. Raihan smiled against his mouth, his eyes sliding shut. Was this real? He was definitely dreaming. He deepened the kiss, and Raihan matched him, letting one of his trembling hands settle into the small of Piers’ back.

Somehow, it was.

Footsteps were coming towards them.

Piers’ eyes snapped open again, and he looked wide-eyed at Raihan as Leon appeared from the tunnel behind them just as they pulled away.

“Oh - there you two are,” Leon said, sounding out of breath. “I was just - trying to get back to the hotel - wound up here.” His gaze grew apologetic. “I’m - I’m terribly sorry about what happened. You both look so red in the face.”

“It’s fine!” came both voices, very quickly. They stood up together, Raihan accidentally bumping into Piers’ leg and Piers giving an incredibly nervous laugh.

Leon sighed. “Are, ah, you two headed back to the hotel? Mind if I tag along? I...don’t know that I can find my way out of here again.” The pair exchanged a helpless look, before Raihan offered, “Y-yeah, Leon, sure. Let’s...let’s head out.”

The short walk seemed to take an eternity. Leon seemed exhausted, though he was clearly putting on a good face and trying to keep the conversation light, while Piers just kept stealing glances at Raihan. He caught him out of the corner of his eye doing the same, so.

The hotel lobby was nearly deserted after what was almost certainly the longest walk of their lives, save for Marnie, who was waiting for them.

“Um, I...I talked to the sponsors, and they’re all gone,” Marnie said, fiddling with her hands. “We cleaned up the room, a bit.”

Leon looked like he might cry from gratitude. “That’s - brilliant, Marnie, thank you so much.” He turned to Piers and Raihan. “Thank you both, so much, seriously. You were fantastic.”

Piers looked down, embarrassed. “‘S nothing.”

“It wasn’t!” Leon exclaimed. “You must be tired, though. Do you need anything?” Piers shook his head. He looked at Raihan, who was fiddling with his hoodie strings.

Marnie looked at him curiously, but said nothing.

“W-well, guess we’re off, then,” Piers said finally, when he felt like the silence might just kill him. Raihan looked up. “Uh - see you all tomorrow.”

“Goodnight,” Leon called, and Raihan gave him a soft smile. “Night.”

He didn’t hold out much hope for sleep. He and Marnie got ready for bed in silence, and only when he was comfortably under the covers did he allow a smile to creep up onto his face. He covered it with his hands. His heart was racing again at the memory, which already felt more like a dream than anything.

Had that actually happened? Had Raihan actually  _ wanted _ to kiss him? He lifted a hand to his lips, feeling giddy. He was rapidly feeling like he might drown in the most obvious realization that he liked Raihan a  _ lot _ . He’d felt happier this week than he could remember, and it was thanks to him, battling him, chatting, just spending time together - it was all so cheesy. Had the time spent together and the fleeting brushes of hands indicated Raihan actually liked him too? Was the kiss just a spur of the moment thing? Did he want something...else?

Piers’ heart ached. What if he didn’t actually have serious feelings for him too, though? What was he supposed to do now? He was torn between wanting to run to him and confess immediately, and never showing his face in public again. Maybe he’d have the chance to do both. He couldn’t just keep his feelings to himself anymore, but what if he ruined what they already had,-

“Stop tossing and turning,” Marnie grumbled from across the room. “What’s  _ happened _ to you? I can’t sleep like this.”

“Sorry,” Piers murmured. “Just can’t sleep.”

“Did something happen?” Marnie rolled over to face him. Piers hugged his pillow. “With the dynamax ‘mons? Or with Raihan?”

At that, Piers hid his face in his pillow. Marnie was quiet.

“You really like him, huh?”

Piers whined.

Marnie went quiet again. Piers waited. “Don’t mock me,” he said, muffled into the pillow.

“I wasn’t gonna.” Marnie sounded amused. “Think it’s cute. He’s really nice.” Piers lifted his red face, slowly. “Every time you see ‘im you make a face like Yamper.”

“I do not!”   
  


“You  _ so  _ do.” Marnie nodded to herself.

“What do I do ‘bout it?” Piers’ voice was quiet. He stared at his hands, still wrapped around the pillow as though he was trying to suffocate it.

“Think you should tell him,” Marnie said simply, as if it were obvious. It sort of was, admittedly. “I mean, I dunno him that much, but he’s always really happy to see you too. He’d probably understand even if he doesn’t  _ like  _ like you.”

“You think so?”

Piers looked up, and Marnie grinned. “I bet ya.”

“Alright,” Piers said, still mumbling. He was lucky his sister was so used to deciphering it. “When’d you get wiser than me, too?”

“Dunno what you mean. Always have been,” she deadpanned. Piers scoffed. “Can you sleep now?”   
  


Piers sighed. “Yeah. Think so.”

“Okay,” Marnie said, rolling back to her other side. “Love you.”

“Love you too.” He closed his eyes and tried to drift off, without thinking too much about Raihan’s eyes or many smiles or gentle hands.

  
  
  


It must’ve worked eventually, as despite the fact he didn’t feel like he’d slept at all at one point he opened his eyes to very early morning light filtering through the thin curtains. Marnie was still asleep, and a glance at his phone informed him it was only 6:30.  _ Ugh. _

He got up quietly, brushing his teeth and getting dressed, hoping the normalcy of routine would quell the fluttering in his heart. It didn’t work, but after wasting 15 minutes he flopped back across the bed to see - 

Raihan had written, and Piers’ heart began pounding again.

_ hey sorry this is so early but whenever you wake up do you want to talk? _

Piers shut his phone off, turned it back on, reread the message, shut the phone off again and went to splash water on his face. Why was he up this early too?

When he felt like he could safely breathe again, he picked up his phone a third time and opened the reply box.

_ sure, if you’re up now i’m free!  _ He deleted it. Too eager.

_ sounds good i’d love to chat- _ Deleted.  _ where should we meet up?  _ Probably a necessary question, but didn’t quite have the right tone.

_ sure, where do you want to meet? _ He hit send almost before he could reread it, just wanting to reply at this point. He waited. Walked around the room.

The phone buzzed again.  _ up early too haha? maybe around the side of the hotel where we were last night? _

Piers grabbed his jacket, barely stopping to send a thumbs-up emoji before heading out the door.

By the time he was outside, Piers’ heart was hammering in his chest and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to form any coherent sentences. He attempted to fix his hair again and again, and squeezed the metal on his choker in his palm.

Raihan was standing there as he rounded the corner, his hands in his hoodie pocket. “H-hey!”

“Hey,” Piers said, trying valiantly not to retreat into his hair or mumble. A pause. “Um-”

“Uh-”

“Sorry, go ahead-”

“Nono, it’s fine-”

They finally stopped and looked at each other. Both started laughing, looking embarrassed. “Sorry…”

Raihan looked down. “Listen, Piers, I just - I just wanted to say I’m sorry.”

Piers frowned. “What’re you sorry for?”

“Just...the kiss and...everything.” Piers felt his heart drop like a stone. “Listen, ah, I...I haven’t been honest with you.”

Piers swallowed the lump in his throat. “W...what do you mean?”

Raihan’s face was flushed. “Um. I...you don’t have to, like, say anything or whatever, but I...thought I should just, come out and say it.” He nervously ran his fingers through his hair.

“Piers, I...I like you a lot. I have for like, a long while now. And I, um, shouldn’t have put you on the spot like that yesterday, so...I just…sorry...” He swallowed. “Uh, yeah! I was stupid.”   
  


Piers’ mouth was slightly agape. He blinked at Raihan, wide-eyed.  _ What.  _ “What,” he said. It took some time for the actual message to sink into his seemingly addled brain.

Raihan looked at him, rubbing the back of his neck. “Uh - I’m...I can go if you’re...uncomfortable or anything,” he said, looking to Piers for any kind of response other than shock.

“Wait. Uh, no.”

“No…?”

“‘M not uncomfortable or anything, I’m - sorry I just - I was - going to say I liked you, like more than I know what to do with, but then you said it first, so - wasn’t expectin’ it.”

“Oh.” Raihan paused. He slowly started to look hopeful. “Wait, you - you like me?”

“‘S what I said,” Piers mumbled, looking down. “I was too thick to realize for a good while, but...you make me real happy.” His face burned.

“Oh, Piers.” Piers looked up, and Raihan was beaming, ear to ear. “That’s...that’s really good, I….I’m glad to hear that, ‘cause you make me so happy too.” Piers smiled back - probably like a Yamper, Marnie was right but he didn’t really care at this point - taking Raihan’s arm in his hand and laughing. “Yeah, I...can’t believe it took me so long to realize it.”

“I can’t believe it took me so long to tell you.” Raihan still looked dumbstruck, looking at Piers like he was the most amazing thing in the world. “I’ve - it’s been a long time coming, honestly. I can’t believe this is happening.”

“Me neither,” Piers said, shaking his head. It felt so right.

“I wanted to tell you last night, but got a little cut off, there,” he said, bringing his arm around to cup Piers’ shoulder gingerly. Piers laughed again.

“No Leon now,” he said, looking into Raihan’s eyes.

“Do you…?”

Piers leaned up and kissed him.

The last day of the exhibition was excellent, Piers found, but it could’ve been the world’s most boring fight and he wouldn’t have cared at all. Their hands brushed as they watched Leon and Victor’s final round, and eventually Raihan’s hand found his way into his as they cheered - Victor had won, but barely. Poor Leon looked a bit the worse for wear, but took the loss well.

Marnie glanced over at the pair and raised her eyebrows. Piers stuck his tongue out at her.

Leon had announced a “make up dinner”, this time in a fish and chips place next door, which Piers thought was a large improvement. Everyone sat down around the tables shoved together in the middle of the restaurant. It was a tight squeeze, but a convenient excuse to sit close to Raihan. As the appointed dinnertime came and went, everyone began to fear for Leon’s whereabouts. Fortunately he appeared only a few minutes later.

“Everyone,” he said, stretching his hands out. “I can’t thank you enough for being here. I...have to apologize about all the - unforeseen issues.” He sighed, looking crestfallen.

It was hard to watch Leon look anything other than his infuriatingly optimistic self. “Let’s have a toast to you,” Piers began, picking up his plastic cup of water. “Nothing ever works out perfectly, mate. ‘S all good.”

Kabu nodded, taking his own cup. “Indeed. Still a fine tournament.”

“Only one hospital visit! We’ve had way more in a single event,” Milo piped, nudging Gordie.

The whole table was nodding and laughing. Leon looked as though he might cry. He sat down beside Victor, blinking.

“To the battle tower!”

“To everyone!”

When the conversation and laughter resumed, Raihan gazed softly at Piers. “That was really sweet of you,” he whispered to him.

Piers shrugged, smiling back at him. “I meant it. Best one of these I’ve ever been to.”

“Oh yeah?”

Piers found Raihan’s hand under the table and gave it a squeeze.

“Yeah.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lays down on the floor  
> i wrote this in like a week and a half because i Cant manage my time but. i hope you like it echooooo i love you so much and i love piers and raihan and now im about to pass out. goodnight everyone


End file.
